And, for a certain group of adventurers, it’s not just a once-in-a-lifetime experience – it’s a hobby. ‘Skyrunning’, a sport that originated in the Alps backs in the 1990s, is growing in popularity, with over 200 annual races worldwide.

The sport is defined as ‘running above an elevation of 2,000m, where the incline exceeds 30 per cent’. The early races included Mont Blanc, and the aim was to run from a town or village up to the highest point on the mountain.

Now the sport’s popularity has taken hold in Britain, and Welsh international runner Sarah Ridgway is up there with the best. She has the women’s record for the Snowdon Horseshoe race, and offers a guided running service at runsnowdonia.co.uk.

So what first attracted her to skyrunning?

Well, the views for one thing. ‘What skyrunning offers that some other forms of running lack is a route that has been designed to match the experience of a classic day out in beautiful environs, rather than a sometimes-contrived course to meet a set distance’ explains Sarah, ‘It can feel, I suppose, a little more like a journey’.

Sarah started out her skyrunning career competing in the Snowdon Horseshoe race in 2011, before moving on to a classic race, Zegama-Aizkorri in the Basque country.

‘Race day was “blessed” with horizontal driving rain and snow on the mountaintops, which suited me perfectly’ she says. ‘It certainly inspired me to continue in the sport’.

Skyrunning, however, is not for the faint-hearted – as well as battling turbulent weather conditions, you need technical know-how to tackle narrow ridges, and the agility of a mountain goat when running over tricky surfaces.

‘If you are prepared to work hard towards developing the right skills, the rewards is an all-empowering sense of being at home in the mountains, in any conditions’ says Sarah.

She has also got to travel to some incredible places to train and compete, including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the Canaries and across Europe and the UK. ‘I love planning routes and racing in new mountainous places, as much as the familiarity of my local favourites’ explains Sarah.

And, as you can see, it’s given her some pretty good snaps for the photo album.

Interested in trying skyrunning?Italy
Experience skyrunning through beautiful Italy with a stay at the Rosa Alpina Hotel & Spa.Price: £1,600 for five nights. Website: rosalpina.it

France
Try trail running in Chamonix in the heart of the French Alps, surrounded by awe-inspiring vistas and glaciated peaks.Price: £1245 for a week. Website: tracks-and-trails.com

Wales
If you have experience of off-road running and would like to try skyrunning in the UK, a weekend in Snowdonia offers group and one-to-one coaching.Price: £160 for a weekend (accommodation not included). Website: runsnowdonia.co.uk